Melting the Ice
by redstringofwait
Summary: So you like Nico. But what does that matter, if you can't even hold a conversation with him?


**Nico x Reader.**

Hestia is supposed to be a virgin goddess so she doesn't have kids. But Iike the idea of a demigod daughter of Hestia. Oh, and this story has two endings you can choose from, depending on how you like to see Nico. So I don't ruin your perception of him.

* * *

"Who do you like?"

"I don't like anyone!"

"Oh, please, don't think you can fool a daughter of Aphrodite," Piper smirked.

Piper was over at your cabin, the Hestia cabin. Since you were Hestia's only child at Camp Half-Blood, you had the whole cabin to yourself. Which was why your best friend Piper visited so often.

"How would you know if I was lying or not?" you asked.

"I can just tell. Now tell me!" Piper insisted. "I swear on the River Styx I won't tell anyone."

"Fine," you sighed. "Don't laugh."

"I won't."

"Or yell."

"I won't."

"Or-"

"Just tell me already!" Piper giggled.

"Nico di Angelo."

"WHAT?"

"Shhh! You said you wouldn't yell!" you whispered, looking out the windows. It was dark outside and someone could have easily overheard.

"Wow. Wow. Wow." Piper fanned her face. "That's so cute! You two would be awesome together."

"Except he cold-shoulders me whenever he sees me," you sighed.

"Really? How can anyone resist your charismatic charms?" Piper teased.

"What charismatic charms?" you muttered.

"Well, don't take his coldness personally. Isn't he like that to everyone?"

"I guess, but..."

"You're the daughter of Hestia, right?"

"Yeah."

"Then melt away his coldness!"

"That was the cheesiest line I've ever heard," you rolled your eyes. "Your jokes are terrible."

"But seriously. You can't get anywhere if he doesn't _warm up_ to you." Piper winked.

"Okay, then how, daughter of Aphrodite?"

"This isn't love-related as much as it's just basic social skills," Piper smirked, "But I suppose I'll help you, since you seem to be lacking in both departments."

"Spare me."

"Okay. So you want him to open up to you? Just give him more opportunities to!"

"Huh?" Maybe you really were socially inept.

"Instead of waiting for him to approach you, why don't you make the first move?"

"No way!" you protested.

"It doesn't have to be anything big. Just make small talk. Or sit next to him at the campfire. Ask to be partners. Small stuff, that friends would do."

"Hmm," you said, tapping your chin. "That's actually not a bad idea."

"Glad to help," Piper grinned.

The next day. Piper was giving you hand gestures and signals all day. You knew she wouldn't stop until you made a move on Nico, so you finally decided to do it during Mythology class, which was out at the amphitheater.

"Hey Nico, can I borrow a pencil?"

The classic first line was used often by classmates back home, so you decided it must work.

"What?" Nico crinkled his eyerbrows. "We're not even taking notes right now."

"Uhhh..." You gave yourself a mental facepalm. How could you have been so stupid?

"Besides, Chiron always passes out pencils when we need them," Nico pointed out.

"I was just...I...never mind." Your heart beat in your chest extra hard, as if it was trying to punch you from the inside for being so stupid.

For the remaining time of class, you avoided looking at both Nico and Piper. But you couldn't avoid Piper for long, and when class ended she hurried up to you and grabbed your wrist.

"I know, I know, I was stupid. I get it," you grumbled, hoping that beating her to it would stop the inevitable 'what were you thinking' speech.

Piper smiled playfully. "Good try though?"

"Are you kididng me?"

"Well, now you know not to mess up like that next time."

"'Next time'?" You withdrew your wrist from her grasp. "There is no 'next time'. I just humiliated myself, why would I want to do it again?"

"C'mon, (your name)," Piper begged. "That was your first try. Now you know better. I'll help you plan out what to do in advance."

You swore you could hear a sprinkle of charmspeak in her words, but it didn't bother you. Piper tended to do that subconsciously when she really wanted something to happen, and if Piper really wanted you to give it another try...well, she wouldn't push you unless you really had a chance, right?

"Fine," you said under your breath. "But you have to help me with every detail!"

"Deal," Piper's eyes lit up. You couldn't help but grin. At first, Piper didn't like her Aphrodite side that much. But it was clear that she did have her mother's blood, with her passion for matchmaking and all.

At night, Piper came over to the Hestia cabin again.

"Let's get down to business," Piper said as she plopped on a bed.

"To defeat the Huns," you giggled, taking the bed across from her's.

"Did they send me daughters of Hestia when I asked for sons of Hades?" Piper sang.

"Piper, that doesn't even make sense," you snorted, throwing a pillow at her.

"Well, I had to think on the spot, okay?" Piper caught the pillow and shifted on her stomach so she was facing you. "Now seriously, let's brainstorm."

You opened the bedside drawer and took out a notebook.

"Do you need a pencil?" Piper teased.

"Ugh! No!" You turned red as you found a blue pen in the drawer and uncapped it. "Any ideas?"

Piper thought for a moment. "Maybe during swordfighting?"

"No way, I'm sure to make a fool of myself. How about during lunch?"

"Nah, you guys wouldn't be able to talk much."

"Then...?"

"It has to be when it's relaxed and a lot more people are around, so it doesn't seem too personal but you could still talk," Piper said. Then you met each other's gazes.

"The campfire!" You both shouted.

The campfire. It was perfect. There were enough people, and it was a time of bonding. No one would be suspicious when two people were carrying a conversation. Probably no one would notice, since everyone talks to their own friends. And fire was one of your strong points, being a daughter of Hestia. Maybe you could affect the campfire so it seemed cozier than usual, adding to a romantic atmosphere?

All they had to do was make sure that Nico ended up next to you.

"Do you know where he usually sits?" Piper asked.

"No," you admitted. Nico was a master of, well, going unnoticed.

"Then let's go find him now," Piper suggested.

It was after dinner, and people were starting to gather around the fire. You looked around, but no Nico in sight.

"There," Piper pointed. You followed her gaze and saw him by the mess hall.

"Wanna go?" Piper asked.

"I'll go alone," you said.

Piper looked amused. "Whatever you say. Good luck!"

The journey was short but nerve wracking. What were you doing? A pang of adrenaline was released in your gut and made you hyper aware of everything. The crisp air, the laughter behind you, the dirt under your shoes.

Next thing you knew, you were standing in front of Nico di Angelo. He side-glanced at you and raised his eyebrows slightly, as if to question your presence.

_Don't screw up now!_

"Uh, hi," you managed. He blinked back. You took that as a sign to go on. "I was just wondering when you were going to come. Because, you know, it's almost time for the campfire and you might miss out."

"I don't go to the campfires," Nico replied. His tone was cool and sharp, like Stygian iron.

"Why not?" you asked, fearing that he didn't like fire or warmth or you.

"I don't do very well in...social situations." Nico looked down at the ground and twisted his skull ring. When he caught you staring at him, you quickly looked away.

"You should go," Nico said. "You're going to the campfire, right?"

"Yeah. I guess. Good night!"

You turned on your foot and ran. Not because you didn't want to be late for the campfire, but because you needed to get far away as quickly as possible. Besides, you were going to the Hestia cabin.

Once you were safely under the silky duvet, you curled into the fetal position and tried to think. Why didn't he at least invite you to stay with him or apologize or _something_? Why didn't he do anything but dismiss you so bluntly?

It was hopeless. You overestimated yourself, thinking maybe you could be the one to thaw his frozen heart. Yeah, right. You couldn't even properly thaw your food in the microwave.

After a few minutes, a gentle knock sounded from your door.

"Come in," you mumbled, partially hoping that it was Nico. But you quickly changed your mind when you realized he would see that you ditched the campfire.

The door creaked open and Piper's head poked in.

"Oh, I knew you'd be here. What happened?"

Piper sat on the spot beside you on the bed. She gave you some space, which you liked. She didn't fuss over you, she knew that you just needed to know that someone was there for you.

"Something happen with Nico?" Piper asked gently.

You nodded, tearing up at her concerned tone. Percy and Annabeth and everyone else didn't cry when they were about to be killed by monsters. And there you were, crying over the most cliché teenage girl problem there was: a guy.

"It's fine," Piper said, as if reading your mind. "It must be hard."

"It's not, really. I'm just being a drama queen."

"But that's just part of being a girl, isn't it?" Piper smiled.

Just then, there was a banging on the door.

"Piiiper! We know you're in there! It's almost lights out and we'll be busted if our head counselor isn't there!"

"Okay, okay!" Piper rolled her eyes. Then she whispered, "Tell me if you need anything! It'll get better, I promise."

You forced yourself to smile and tilted your head to the door, a subtle hurry-up-your-cabinmates-are-waiting gesture. Piper waved just before she reached the door, and then she left.

As guilt as you felt, you were almost grateful that she was gone. It wasn't anything personal, you just needed some time to self-reflect and calm down.

And what better place to do that than the forest?

You often went to the outskirts of the forest when you needed alone time. There was something calming about the serene navy sky and the sound of the rivers flowing. The naiads were asleep by then, so you didn't have to worry about anyone seeing you.

You sat on a big rock and looked up at the moon, which was in its late waxing phase. It was really close to being a full moon, but not quite. It would probably be nice and round by tomorrow.

You heard howling in the distance, but you didn't think much of it. Mrs. O'Leary liked roaming the forest by herself, and sometimes she even visited you.

You always wanted a dog since you were little. Your mom never let you because she said they were dirty and too much work. But wasn't a lot of work a fair price to pay for companionship? Back at home, you had friends, but you yearned for a best friend. The kind who didn't care how messy your room was, because hers was strewn with dirty laundry whenever you came over. You were pretty close to Piper, but it was too early to tell if you guys would reach that level. Anyway, she spent so much time with Jason and you didn't-

Leaves rustled not too far away. When you looked around, you locked eyes with two black eyes.

"Mrs. O'Leary!"

Her ears twitched when you called her name. She slowly made her way towards you, which was unusual because she normally bounded up to you happily. She also looked bigger than usual, but that could have just been the angle.

Then you realized that Mrs. O'Leary had red eyes, not black.

Before your mind could process what that meant, the not-so Mrs. O'Leary leaped in your direction and growled loudly. Thanks to your demigod instincts, your body automatically jumped out of the way. You considered summoning a fire to scare the dog, but you were in a forest. The last time a fire happened there, the naiads were grumpy for a week because they needed to move to different trees. And forest fires were just bad.

You ran away from the dog, squeezing into small spaces between rocks and trees you knew it wouldn't be able to go through. But you couldn't run forever, and you were already getting tired.

_How pathetic_, you thought. Other demigods could easily use their powers in a situation like this. Percy could use the water from the river and do something. Annabeth could outwit the monster. Piper could use charmspeak to convince the dog to go away. Jason could simply fly away. And that was just using their powers. You were sure they would be able to defeat the hellhound without any of their special abilities.

The sounds of the hellhound got closer and closer. You were getting slower and slower. Wow. You were probably going to die, or at least get seriously injured, because you went into the forest at night. You should have obeyed the camp rules. They were there for a reason, after all.

Then you heard a loud, angry roar. Confused, you glanced behind you. What you saw was enough to make you stop running and take cover behind a tree.

Sharp rocks were levitating and embedding themselves into the hellhound. The monster got angrier and angrier every time, trying to fight whatever it was but not finding anything to fight.

"What in the world?"

Out of no where, a dark figure appeared directly in front of the hellhound and slashed through it with a sword.

A Stygian iron sword.

"You can come out now," he said. The hellhound shattered into bits of gold dust, showering the ground like confetti.

Your heart pounded as you stumbled out from behind the tree.

"Nico?"

[Okay, so here's the part where you can choose your ending. Read **ending A** if you see Nico as a sensitive soul who's only cold so he can protect himself from being hurt. Scroll down to read **ending B** if you see Nico as a more assertive and cold person who's just slow to open up to people. Or just read both.]

**Ending A**

He turned to face you, brushing dust off of his shoulder. His glare was piercing and you found it hard to look at him.

"Why did you come out on your own this late?"

"I could ask you the same question," you shot back.

Nico narrowed his eyes. "I came because I just happen to have the cabin nearest to the forest, and I heard you getting chased by a hellhound."

"You heard...?"

"That's not the point. You could have died out here! What were you thinking?"

"I was thinking that maybe you could be nicer instead of being so cold all the time!"

There was a dead silence. Nico widened his eyes. He looked like someone had just punched him in the stomach when he was unprepared.

"Uh...Nico?" You suddenly felt guilty. It wasn't his fault that he came off as being cold. He was only like that because he built a wall around himself, not letting anyone in so he wouldn't get hurt. Of course you had to realize this now, after risking your life by coming into the forest.

"Sorry."

Nico looked down at the ground. It was the first time you saw him look helpless and, well, like a normal person.

"I didn't mean to be like that," Nico said. "Well I did, but I didn't mean to..."

"It's okay. I understand," you smiled, putting a hand on his shoulder. He flinched, so you quickly withdrew it.

"Sorry," you said, "I should get going now but thanks for—"

You were cut off when Nico pulled you in. Your chest pressed against his and your head rested on his lower shoulder. His arms wrapped around your back.

"Sorry if I hurt your feelings," Nico mumbled. "It's just that I suck at dealing with people."

"Same," you said. "You just saved my life and I yelled at you."

"Trust me, that's nothing compared to the things I do," he chuckled.

"Why don't we start over?" you suggested, squirming free from his grasp.

"Huh?"

"We both messed up. Let's just start from the top."

"I don't get it," Nico said, cocking his head.

"Here, I'll start," you said. "Hi, I'm (your name)." You stretched out your hand.

"Nico di Angelo," he grinned, shaking your hand.

"What are you doing here in the forest?" you asked.

"I just wanted to look at the stars," Nico said, pointing at the night sky.

"What a coincidence," you said. "Well, it's late, so I'm going to go back to my cabin now."

"I'll go with you," Nico said. "It's dangerous to go alone."

"Sure."

After that, Nico escorted you back to your cabin, talking on the way. You smiled as you crawled into bed, looking out the window at the now full moon. It finally felt like the ice was melting.

**Ending B**

He turned to face you, brushing dust off of his shoulder. His glare was piercing and you found it hard to look at him.

"What were you thinking?"

"I...um..."

"Do you know how worried I was?" Nico demanded, marching up to you.

"You were worried?" you shot back. "I didn't know you—"

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, I don't have a heart. Try to be more original next time." He grabbed your wrist and pulled you with him.

"What are you doing?"

"What does it look like I'm doing? I'm obviously dragging you out of here so you don't cause me any more trouble."

"Why are you so mad?"

He turned to face you. You gulped, because his stare was so intense.

"Because once you lose your sister after she ran off on her own, you don't trust anyone else to go out by themselves either.

"Yeah, but would you be this mad if, say, Piper ran off by herself?" you countered.

"No," he snorted.

"Then why me?"

"What, do you expect me to confess my love for you or something?"

"No," you said, crossing your fingers behind your back.

"Let's get going then," Nico said, tugging at your arm again.

"Ow ow ow, be more gentle with a girl, yeah?"

"Oh please, I'm not even pulling hard," Nico rolled his eyes.

Soon, you were out of the forest.

"Okay, bye," you said. But Nico was still holding onto you.

"Uh...Nico?"

"Be safer, okay?" He finally let go of you and left.

Guys were so complicated. Especially sons of Hades.

* * *

Okay, so that went worse than I expected. But hopefully the two endings make up for it? Tell me if you liked the interactive-ness, so maybe I can make it even more interactive in the future, with options that lead to more options. Oh, and tell me if you want me to write something different next time, instead of another Nico oneshot.

* * *

apparently forbids both second person POV and interactive fanfiction. I heard that second person isn't allowed because it could be sexually engaging, and interactive stories aren't allowed because they can include links, which is considered spam. But since mine don't contain mature content or links, that should be fine, right? Ahhhh I don't want to be deleted TT^TT


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